IBM (NYSE: IBM) 
recently announced that it will invest US$2.2 million in 2006 to expand its Linux Technology Center (LTC) in Brazil.
Developers at the LTC will work to make Linux more efficient, specializing in developing Linux systems with cell, power and virtualization technologies, IBM said.
Furthering Software, Educational Development
The investment will be used to complete construction of a Linux development laboratory in Hortolandia and expand a second lab in Campinas, on Brazil's Unicamp campus. It will assist with upgrading lab construction and equipment, furthering software development projects with Linux, and expanding student internships and job opportunities for recent graduates as a result of a collaboration between IBM and Unicamp, a university in Brazil.
"IBM's Linux Technology Center team in Brazil is rapidly becoming a worldwide leader for driving innovative Linux and open source 
technologies into emerging markets," said Jeff Smith, vice president, open source and Linux middleware, IBM. "The Center is helping customers gain a competitive edge from Linux-based solutions by working with Brazilian universities to advance educational opportunities for students, and stimulate technology and economic development in the region."
With the announcement, the LTC in Brazil will now become one of the five largest centers of its kind in the world.
Supporting Innovation
The investment will enable engineers and developers at the Center to work on projects including Linux development for IBM's Cell processor; Linux development for IBM's Power processor; ease of use improvements for Linux on IBM systems; improved virtualization for Intel-based processors; and Common Criteria Security certification for Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) Enterprise Linux version 5.
According to recent research from the Gartner (NYSE: IT) , IBM Linux sales in the key emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China, "BRIC" countries, grew 75 percent from 2005 to 2006.
Many of the developers working at the Center are recent graduates of Unicamp. As part of a partnership between Unicamp and IBM, researchers at the university are collaborating with IBM computer scientists in Brazil to help train recent graduates at the University's Computer Institute. IBM also contributed laboratory equipment and software, scholarships for students, and professional mentors to help manage project development.
The IBM Linux Technology Center is a worldwide organization with teams in approximately 40 locations, with involvement of more than 600 engineers worldwide.
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